New five-year Public Safety Plan launched

A new plan, setting out Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service’s strategic approach to management of risk in the communities it serves, has been given the go-ahead by its governing body.

Members of Buckinghamshire & Milton Keynes Fire Authority unanimously approved Buckinghamshire Fire & Rescue Service’s 2020-25 Public Safety Plan following the outcomes of an eight-week public consultation.

The plan, which will come into effect from 1 April 2020, also sets out other strategic challenges that the Service faces over the next five years, in particular:

• The introduction of new transport infrastructure
• A growing, ageing and diversifying population
• Civil emergencies (including the potential effects of climate change)
• A changing technology, information and systems security environment
• Workforce pressures
• A potentially adverse financial outlook

The consultation process, which ran from 23 September to 18 November 2019, included focus groups with members of the public, meetings with union representatives and an online questionnaire open to all. Hundreds of partner and community organisations were also invited to participate.

Authority Chairman, Councillor Lesley Clarke OBE and the Chief Fire Officer Jason Thelwell QFSM, thank everyone who participated in the consultation. Members of the public, Service staff, local councils and other partner agencies all provided constructive feedback which will be used to help inform the development of the various proposals contained in the plan.